Seaweed and Sea Anemones Proteins as a Source of New Pharmaceutical Active Principles

Abstract

Among marine sources, seaweeds and sea anemones are highly attractive for their diversity and complex composition, the major components being polysaccharides, proteins, pigments, phenolic compounds, vitamins and minerals. Seaweeds and sea anemones could be a source of different proteins and peptides with unique structures with interesting biological properties, such as antitumoral, antimicrobial, antiinflammatory, antidiabetic, antioxidant, among others. This chapter presents an overview on the marine algal and anemone bioactive proteins and peptides, their extraction and the development of novel carrier systems with potential interest for pharmaceutical applications.

Seaweeds as a Source of Functional Proteins

“…Seaweeds contain several bioactive compounds, including polysaccharides, polyphenols, lipids, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), sterols, proteins, dietary fiber, pigments, and vitamins [101,102]. Several studies have revealed that the seaweeds are an excellent source of various proteins (amino acids, peptides, phycobiliproteins, and lectins) with interesting biological properties, such as antihypertensive, antioxidant, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, antitumoral, antiviral, and antimicrobial [20,32,103]. Table 6 summarizes the bioactive compounds and their functional properties for selected seaweeds.…”